Arcana Coelestia # 9685
9685. 'And you shall put the table on the north side' means good dwelling in obscurity. This is clear from the meaning of 'the table', on which the loaves of the Presence were laid, as a receptacle of heavenly blessings, dealt with in 9527, 'the loaves' being celestial good, which comes from the Lord, 9545; and from the meaning of 'the north' as obscurity so far as the truths of faith are concerned, dealt with in 3708, and since truth is in obscurity, so too is good. For in the Lord's spiritual kingdom good manifests itself by means of truth, and truth is perceived as good when it passes from the understanding into the will. This good is the good of charity towards the neighbour, and it is called spiritual good. It is different in the Lord's celestial kingdom. There good does not manifest itself as such by means of truth; rather those there enjoy direct insight into that good. From this it becomes clear why that table was placed on the side towards the north, and the lampstand on the side towards the south. But see what has been stated and shown immediately above in 9684 on these matters.
Jeremiah 46:6-10
6
Don't let the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; in the north by the river Euphrates have they stumbled and fallen.
7
Who is this who rises up like the Nile, whose waters toss themselves like the rivers?
8
Egypt rises up like the Nile, and his waters toss themselves like the rivers: and he says, I will rise up, I will cover the earth; I will destroy cities and its inhabitants.
9
Go up, you horses; and rage, you chariots; and let the mighty men go forth: Cush and Put, who handle the shield; and the Ludim, who handle and bend the bow.
10
For that day is [a day] of the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour and be satiate, and shall drink its fill of their blood; for the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, has a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
